


Happily Ever After

by yearn4themoon



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Timeline, Angst, Bad Wolf, Character Death, F/M, Graphic Sex, Pete's World, Plot Twists, Tissue Warning, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-08
Updated: 2014-04-08
Packaged: 2018-01-18 16:09:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1434559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yearn4themoon/pseuds/yearn4themoon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The universe is never on the Doctor's side.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Happily Ever After

**Author's Note:**

> WARNINGS OUT THE WAZOO: Character death, swearing, graphic sex, more character deaths, and feelings of beating me over the head after you read this might occur. 
> 
> Also- there is a smidge of dialogue from The Parting of The Ways. I do not own any of that, just FYI
> 
> And major thanks to rudennotgingr for being beta babe extraordinaire.

They called him reckless.

A danger to the team.

A liability that someday could get everyone killed.   
  
The Doctor hung his head in his hands as he sat on a bench by a wall outside the H.C. Clements building that was the front for Torchwood in Pete's World. He was grateful that it was the middle of the night, so no one was out to bug him. He couldn't do anything right. Not a thing. Not even building a life with Rose. He just kept mucking things up over and over again. He couldn't fathom why she stuck around.

It had been barely six months since they had returned, and in that time he had gotten a flat with Rose, an entire new wardrobe (he had become very fond of waistcoats), and gotten a job at Torchwood as a field agent. And since he started the job he had burned down 3 office buildings, a church, 2 news agents, and even a fire station. That wasn't even the tip of the iceberg. He had gotten it wrong about an alien species at least once every month. He believed that they would behave exactly like the ones he fought in the prime universe, but he ended up getting his team in trouble or injured almost every time he got it wrong. Only one person had died due to his fuck-ups so far, and that was one person too many.

_Jake._

Mickey's best friend and Rose's partner since she came to this universe and he had sent him in to the wrong place at the wrong time because he thought he was _clever._

Rose had tried to stop him, but he didn't listen. He thought he was the expert. Not her. Not anyone else. Just him. And Jake had paid the ultimate price for it. He didn't care that he had almost died as well when he went back in to claim Jake's corpse. He was going to take care of the aliens once and for all, despite protests from Rose. He didn't see her as the remains of their team held her back as she screamed while he transmatted off world. He didn't see her slump to the ground in defeat, knowing he wasn't going to come back alive either.

It was a miracle he even did.

The Doctor raked his hands up his head, digging his fingers into his scalp, feeling the pressure against his skull as he let out a strangled cry.   
  
_Stupid. Stupid. Stupid._

“Doctor?”

He froze for a moment. _Rose_. This would surely be the final straw for her. The Doctor opened his eyes, but he was still looking at the ground. He removed his hands from his hair, and wiped them over his face, sweeping away tears. He sniffed, and wiped his nose on the sleeve of the blue dress shirt she loved so much, because what did it matter now? He couldn't bring himself to look up at her. He didn't want to see the disappointment in her eyes.

“Doctor,” Rose said again, kneeling down beside him and placing a timid hand on his cheek. “Talk to me, please.”

The Doctor released a shuddering breath, and leaned away from her touch, but still didn't look at her. He didn't deserve her compassion. Not now.

Everything had been sunshine and rainbows for the first few weeks they had been back. He was eager, and happy. Kissing her at every chance he got, touching her, making love to her. It was all so surreal, this life they had begun to live. This gift he had given to himself; the slow path with Rose. He would sleep in with her, eat till he was bursting, he would buy her presents just because, and take her to crazy places around London that she never even knew existed.

But then they started working at Torchwood. He had gotten his papers. Dr. James Mott was his legal name now. Age 35. No one called him James though. It was still 'The Doctor', and Rose was glad for that. Things were brilliant at first. He got along well with almost everyone there, and he was well respected by most he came in contact with. Rose went back into the field several months after her return, and he decided he would rather be with her than stuck behind a desk all day. But then they made him carry a gun. He refused, but they said he had to have it or he would never be able to work in the field. For months it remained initsholster. Then came the Atraxi, and instead of bringing Prisoner Zero back to base as specified, he had shot it between the eyes twice. All because it had threatened Rose. It was all downhill from there.

The Doctor shook himself from the memories, and finally brought his eyes to hers.   
  
“I'm suspended,” he spoke quietly.

“I know,” she responded gently. “I'm sorry.”

“Don't be,” he sighed, resting his face in his hands once more; his eyes hidden from view for a moment while he massaged his forehead. “I'm dangerous. He was right you know.”

“Who was?”

“Me. I'm too dangerous. I don't belong there. I don't belong here-”

“Don't you say that. Of course you belong here!”

His head shot up then, and he looked her in the eyes. “Jake died because of _me_!”  
  
Rose swallowed, and kept silent. She saw the pain there in his eyes; the shame. She had no idea how to comfort him right now, so she did the only thing she could think of. She took his hand and held it, because she needed to feel him. She needed to be sure he was really there, back with her and not down in the morgue like Jake was. He didn't look away. He just stared at her, searching her eyes for the judgment that he knew was coming. But instead, he could only see how broken she was. She swallowed hard. He could tell she was pushing back tears, as her thumb ran back and forth across his hand absentmindedly.   
  
“Rose?”

She pulled her hand away and stood, her knees aching from being on the hard ground for too long.

“What?”

“Are you...are you okay?” The Doctor stood as well and reached out for her, but she stepped back.   
  
A sarcastic laugh escaped her before she could stop it. “Now he asks.” She spun around to walk away, but stopped short, turning around again quickly crossing her arms in front of herself protectively. “You don't get it do you?”

The Doctor shook his head, confused. “What?”

“One life, Doctor.  _ One. _ ” She held up a finger for emphasis.

“I know Rose, I-”

She shook her head. “ _ No _ . You don't know. How could you? You were  _ dead _ !”

“But I didn't die, Rose. I'm right here.” He stepped forward to try and catch her arms to comfort her, but she stepped away from him again holding her hands out in front of herself to stop him from trying again. “I- I don't understand.”

The Doctor watched as something snapped inside her mind. He knew now she was furious. Rose walked towards him then, her small body looking suddenly very tall and very menacing, causing him to hit his back on the wall that was behind him. There was  nowhere else for him to go. She got right into his personal space so he could feel her angered breath on his face. Her voice was very low and frighteningly calm when she spoke next.

“I was there when they pulled your body from the Thames. Your friend, the Brigadier? He helped me steal your corpse from the Unit morgue so I could burn it before anyone decided to use your body for science.” But she didn't stop there. The more she talked the louder her voice got. “I jumped for _years_ Doctor. Did you ever think about that? Did you ever think about how long I searched for you? How many different universes I went to before I even found that version of you? Even then...I was too late. You're not invincible. Not as a Time Lord and certainly not as a human, and it's about time you got that through that thick, part human, head of yours!”  
  
“I didn't ask you to come looking for me.” He knew as soon as he had said it, that those words didn't come out right.

She really let loose then. “Well then who the fuck else was gonna help save all of reality?”  
  
The Doctor shook his head, as he scrambled to search for the right words.“That's not what I meant.”  
  
“Then what did you mean?”   
  
“I don't know!” He shouted, throwing his arms wide, before clawing at his hair once more.  
  
Rose didn't let up. “I thought you were happy. I thought I made you happy!”

“You do!”

She crossed her arms protectively over her chest again, staring him down, as her voice became that frightening calm once more. “Then why do you keep trying to kill yourself?”   
  
“I'm not trying to kill myself, Rose. I promise I'm not.”

Rose shook her head at him. “That's not what it looked like tonight.”

“Rose...”

She cut him off. “I didn't think you were coming back.... After all that work- after everything I went through to get back to you, and after everything he gave us...” Her voice trailed off as she covered her face with her hands, sobbing quietly. The Doctor stepped forward to comfort her, but sensing him, she turned away.  The Doctor didn't give up that easy. He pulled her to him anyway, holding her close while she broke down completely.

When her sobs had quieted down a bit he lifted her face up with a hand, and held her chin so he could make sure she was looking at him. His eyes were bristling with tears as he spoke very softly to her.

“What do you want me to do Rose? Stay home? Become a hermit? Wear a bubble wrap suit to work with a helmet? At some point, I am going to get hurt. At some point, I am going to be in danger again. At some point....I  _ am _ going to die.”

Rose shook her head violently from side to side and threw herself into his arms, clutching desperately at the cloth on the back of his shirt as she held him. Her breath was warm as she nuzzled into his neck, trying to be as physically close to him as possible whilst one was outside in public. He could feel her body shudder, so he wrapped his arms around her tighter , trying to make her feel more secure. A single sob escaped her as he held her to him, like she was wounded but too tired to cry any more. He was surprised a few moments after when she started pressing small kisses onto the curve of his neck. She then worked her way up to his earlobe; her actions stirring something very primal inside him as she kissed his forehead, cheek, and then finally his lips.

The Doctor suppressed a groan as she ran her hands up his back and into his hair, gripping it tightly like she had his shirt moments earlier. Rose ran her tongue along the seam of his lips, and he opened his mouth to her, inviting her in. His hips ground into her involuntarily as she continued her ministrations.

Before he knew it he was lifting her up, her legs wrapping tightly around  his waist as he spun, pressing her back into the wall. He released a moan of satisfaction as she ground her hips against his straining erection. He couldn't help but buck against her more as he broke the kiss ~~~~  to suck on her pulse point. Rose unhooked her legs from around him and slid down, her feet on the ground once more. The Doctor whimpered with disappointment ~~ , ~~ as he released his lips from her neck so he could look at her. But then he realized she was wiggling out of her jeans. Out here. Where anyone could see them if they passed by. It somehow made him impossibly harder. He should be bothered by this. He should stop her. This was wrong. But it was also so very right, and so very them.

“Fuck me,” she breathed, before reclaiming his mouth once more. Her hands gripped the sides of his face as she kissed him passionately, her tongue devouring him. The Doctor didn't second guess the situation anymore and unzipped his trousers, releasing his hard cock to the cool night air. He grabbed her ass and hoisted her back up, hooking her legs around his waist. With fast fingers he pushed her knickers to the side and entered her quickly, making her cry out with pleasure. He set a punishing pace, but he couldn't help himself. He had to have her now, here, in the open. He was hers and she was his, and he wanted the whole world to know he was fucking her right here, right now. Rose's fingers clawed at his back as he thrust in and out of her wet folds. It made him sorry that he didn't remove his shirt. He loved it when she left marks on his skin. The thought of that and her heat surrounding him made him fuck her even harder. Rose cried out again, one hand winding its way into his hair and pulling it. The Doctor growled against her neck, as his teeth closed around her flesh. He bit her just hard enough to leave a mark. Rose gasped at the sensation, and pulled at his hair again before kissing him roughly. He could tell she was close to orgasm by the way she was holding her breath. She always did that. She said it made her come harder. And right now he wanted to make her come so hard she would scream his name.

He pinned her against the wall so she wouldn't fall, as one hand still gripped her ass. He snaked the other one around to her swollen clit, and using his thumb, tossed her over the edge and into oblivion. As her inner walls throbbed around him, he fell as well, spilling his seed inside of her while  s he ground into his cock as deep as it would go. His was name on her lips as he rode out his own orgasm.

The Doctor couldn't help but smile as he came down from the high this part human body gave him. Rose panted, licking the seam of his lips, dragging him into one more long kiss before he unwound her legs from his waist, settling her back down onto the ground.

There was an ache in his body, but it wasn't from what had just occurred against the wall. The ache grew, and seized his single human heart. It was grief. Shame. Sorrow. Guilt for letting his hormones take over when he should have been fixing things between them instead.

“I'm sorry,” he said softly as he zipped back up his trousers.   
  
Rose said nothing as she shimmied back into her jeans. She smiled at him, but it didn't reach her eyes. The street out in front of HC Clements was still empty. No coppers showing up to book them for indecent exposure. He breathed a sigh of relief at that. She took his hand, twining their fingers as she always did, but holding it limply. “Let's go home.”

 

**

Another six months and forty eight therapy sessions later, the Doctor was cleared to go back in the field. He was ready to go back after thirty two, but the forty eight were mandatory, and Pete didn't want to take any chances. His first day back happened to be on the day of their one year anniversary ofthe Crucible, aka his birthday.   
  
“You don't have to go in today you know?” Rose said sleepily as she drew lazy circles on his chest.

He had gotten up that morning while she was supposedly still sleeping and took a shower. Little did he know she was playing dress up. When he came back into their room, he found her draped across the bed, in nothing but a big red bow and black high heels.

Best. Present. Ever.

The bow was now dangling from the ceiling fan as it spun lazily, cooling them off in their afterglow.

“I know, but I need to. It's time,” he replied thoughtfully. He was ready for this. He was. Wasn't he? At the very least he would have Rose with him to keep him grounded and hopefully out of trouble.

The Doctor kissed the top of Rose's head, snuggling her closer as he breathed in the scent of her hair. He thought back on that day on the Crucible, and then what happened afterward. He was one lucky bastard wasn't he? Never in the whole wide universe did he dream that this kind of life would be possible for him. And with Rose to boot? Yup. He was damn lucky. 

 

**

 

But he should have known better. As soon as he thinks the universe is on his side, it always has to rip something away.

He had been drawn to another part of the building they were doing recon on, investigating a radiation spike when all hell broke loose. The Doctor didn't think he'd ever run that fast in his life. Every inch of his being was screaming at him to run faster. And despite the stitch in his side, and burning sensation in his lungs, he did. But it wasn't fast enough. She was falling to the floor as he entered the hallway where she and the rest of their team were. Everyone was down. Every last one of them.

With a deadly accuracy he shot down the alien that had taken down the team, before rushing to Rose's side. She was still breathing, and from what he could tell there was no wound. There was no point of entry. Confused, he tried to rouse her, but she wouldn't wake. He pressed the button on his comm device that signaled distress and knelt down, pulling Rose into his lap.

“You're going to be okay Rose, just hold on,” he murmured as he cradled her head in his arms. Around him, the four other fallen team members began to stir. His friend, Sam, upon waking violently threw up before passing out again. The Doctor carefully laid Rose back down on the ground so he could go and help, but as he was standing he realized there was something in his hand. A clump full of hair. Rose's hair. He stared at his hand in horror.  _ Radiation poisoning _ .

“No no no no no no no!” The Doctor yelled as he went from person to person, checking the symptoms. Another of his team members vomited, but this time, it was blood.

The Doctor spun in a circle, yanking at his hair, tears burning in his eyes as they fell on Rose.   
“Where's the bloody medi-vac?” He shouted, the words echoing throughout the hallway. He rushed back to Rose's side as she started coughing. Blood trickled from her nose, in a steady stream. The Doctor ripped his shirt as he knelt down, pulling her to him once more, as he held the strip of cloth to her nose in a feeble attempt to help. “Hold on Rose, just hold on. They'll be here soon. I promise.”

“Trying...” she mumbled weakly, raising a hand to his face. The Doctor noticed her skin had a yellowish hue to it, not the gray of death. The yellow became brighter, turning to gold before fading.

No. He had imagined that, he had to of.

But then Rose opened her eyes, and they glowed gold.

She was regenerating. But that's impossible! How could she? Unless....

A memory from the Game Station washed over him, from when Rose had become Bad Wolf.

“ _You've done it Rose, now stop!”_

“ _But how can I let go of this? I bring life.”_

“ _But this is wrong! You can't control life and death.”_

“ _But I can.”_

She didn't just bring Jack back, she had saved herself as well. There was always a small part of him that couldn't believe that what he had done  had saved her  completely.  He had just denied it. But now here was the proof.

The Doctor gripped the sides of her face, and stared into her now gold eyes, as he spoke very quickly. “Rose, I need you to listen to me. You're regenerating.”

“What? But I can't...”

“Yes. Yes you can. Just listen to me. Trust me Rose. You're going to have to concentrate. Every single cell in your body is about to change, and it's going to hurt. But you can't let go. You can't. Or you will die. Do you understand me?”

Rose squeezed her eyes shut and nodded.

The universe would never be on his side. The whole reason he was afraid of a life with Rose was because he thought she would grow old, wither, and die. But then the Crucible happened, and the Metacrisis. He thought...he thought he knew what was best. He thought he could finally grow old with her. But she would never grow old. She would regenerate, just like he used to. He should have listened to that niggling feeling at the back of his brain. He should have checked her out  thoroughly after waking up from his regenerative coma, and she wouldn't be stuck here. He wouldn't...

Rose's eyes shot open again, the gold overpowering now. “I'm sorry.” Her entire body began to glow once more. The Doctor kissed her softly before standing up to move out of the way.  As the glowing got brighter, the Doctor's heart broke. Some birthday, huh? He thought, as he watched Rose's body explode with light.

 

**

 

The Doctor sat straight up in bed, soaked with sweat  and gasping for air. As he tried to get his heartsbeat, and his breathing back under control he noticed he was aboard the TARDIS, the hum of his ship calming him slowly. Looking to his side he saw Rose; she was sound asleep beside him. His dream not even stirring her. What was he doing in her bed? The Doctor racked his brain as he tried to distinguish between what was a dream and what was reality. Krop Tor. That's where they had been, Krop Tor. The Black Hole and the Devil. So why did he dream of being on a parallel world with her? As a metacrisis? It just didn't make any sense unless...it was an echo of a timeline to come. One that he wasn't meant to follow but the TARDIS had shown him anyhow. One where Rose and he were together; properly together except...everything was wrong.

_ Bad Wolf. _

The Doctor gazed at Rose's sleeping form. Surely, it was all just a dream. Wasn't it? He shook his head, and pressed the heels of his palms to his eyes as he tried to forget the horror he saw there at the end while under whatever it was, dream or not. Surely if Rose had regenerative abilities, he would know. He would feel it, right? But then again he always felt this warm haze when she was near. Either way he'd find out in the morning when he marched her straight into the med bay for testing. Till then, he was going to wrap himself around her, and thank his lucky stars she was still by his side. And he wasn't going to take a single second with her for granted anymore.

 

 

 

 


End file.
